Monday, December 30, 2019

The Debate Over Same Sex Marriage - 1334 Words

-Lately the congress of the United States has considered, but failed to approve the so-called Federal Marriage Amendment. This would amend the US Constitution to legally define marriage as the union of a man and a woman only. Utah has passed a similar amendment that was ratified by Utah voters in the general election of 2004. I believe that couples of the same sex should be able to marry, and receive the same rights as man and women couples, but I m going to argue both points. The pros and the cons of same sex marriage. -Same sex marriage has been a fight that has been growing since the twentieth century. The United Sates is generating discrimination against same-sex couples. People of faith are the biggest advocates against same-sex marriages; with the belief that marriage is the foundation for procreation and new life. Some people believe that same sex couples, without the ability to have their own child, should not be allowed the right to marriage. There are also lots of responsibility s associated with marriage. Same sex couple has been denied these rights, and are being discriminated against all of the time. Same sex couples are also denied the right to make decisions regarding their partners health as well as the inability to adopt one another’s children, is experienced by same-sex couples every day. -People also believe that traditional marriage is threatened with high divorce rates that are between 40% and 50%, and with a total of 40% of babies in the UnitedShow MoreRelatedThe Debate Over Same Sex Marriage1682 Words   |  7 PagesThe largely debated topic of same-sex relationships have been on the forefront of all U.S. citizen’s minds, including and more specifically of those in the branches of legislature. More states today have begun passing laws that accept and recognize marriage for this population. This minority group, in some opinions, has been at a disadvantage when it comes to marriage equality. Previous studies have explored this great debate in the United States beginning in the 1970s. The Minnesota Post publishedRead MoreThe Debate Over Same Sex Marriage866 Words   |  4 Pagesindividuals can rebel against the government and be indecorous about it. Besides, in this year alone, we had the USA Today News is saying, â€Å"WASHINGTON — The Supreme Cou rt agreed Friday, January 16, 2015 at 6:12 P.M. to resolve the national debate over same-sex marriage once and for all1†. This disputation after-all it was approved and overturned into 36 out of 50 states. At the end, we can distinctly see how precipitously separated our public position toward homosexuals are rapidly changing to reflectRead MoreThe Debate Over Same Sex Marriage1181 Words   |  5 Pagessociety than same sex marriage? It is a topic that has battered Americans for decades, and just recently has it been decided that same sex marriage and relations is awarded by the constitution. Before this it was at states discretion whether or not to allow those of the same sex to marry. But, on June 26, 2015 the Supreme Court ruled that the constitution gave legal rights to same sex couples to marry in all 50 states where prior to that only 37 states had legalized same sex marriage. (Freedom toRead MoreThe Debate Over Same Sex Marriage1555 Words   |  7 PagesFor years on e nd, same-sex marriage has been a topic of controversy. It has always been an on-going argument; there is the for-side and there is the against-side. There are many arguments for each side but which side has the most convincing argument? Maybe some of these arguments can be debunked. There needs to be a discussion about the holes in arguments and which side is the most convincing. The history of same-sex marriage was anti-climatic for a long time. It seemed that for too many years itRead MoreThe Debate Over Same Sex Marriage979 Words   |  4 Pages Dissenting Rhetoric On June 26, 2015, same-sex marriage was legalized across the united states, due to a decision the Supreme Court made; the decision made all state level bans on same-sex marriage were considered unconstitutional, thus overruling the bans. In the dissenting argument on the Supreme Court’s Decision to legalize same-sex couple marriage, Chief Justice Roberts makes a passionate argument revolving around the fact that it was the Supreme Court that made the decision and not the CountryRead MoreEssay The Debate over Same Sex Marriage894 Words   |  4 PagesThe Debate over Same Sex Marriage Legislation is deeply entrenched in language and the continual process of interpretation. Laws are created as a response to cultural and societal needs, wants and norms and are restructured and interpreted as these desires and standards change over time. The importance of the words chosen and the syntax used in order to translate societys standards into legislation are amplified over time because they are continuously deconstructed, examined, and analyzed.Read MoreThe Debate Over The Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage1264 Words   |  6 Pagestraditional values have come into contest with more liberal values. One of the most prevalent examples of this is the ongoing debate over the legalization of same-sex marriage within America. In the article â€Å"Supreme Court should make gay marriage a national right† by the editorial staff at the Boston Globe, the importance of the upcoming Supreme Court ruling on same sex marriage was stressed because it is a topic that has been dodged thus far. While numerous federal circuit courts have ruled on thisRead MoreSame Sex Marriage Debate Over The Free Speech Clause And Antidiscrimination Law1786 Words   |  8 PagesJournal, the major conflict that exists in this same-sex-marriage-legalization debate is between the free-speech clause and antidiscrimination law. Technically, the people who refused to offer their service to the homosexual people based on their religious belief were not legally wrong according to the first amendment. However, did the homosexual couples do anything wrong? No, they didn’t. They ordered the same services, and they were willing to pay the same amount of money. What they wanted was nothingRead MoreEssay on Marriage Equailty for the LGBT Community1554 Words   |  7 Pagesequality, and particularly, marriage equality. Each individual has their own perception on marriage equality, whether it is based on moral basis, or on a humanistic (humane) basis, which is the belief of not denying anyone the right to be who they are, and therefore love who they love. However, as a society, we must examine the facts, as well as ourselves, as we address the debate for marriage equality for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community. The Debate: Morals v. Humanistic BeliefsRead MoreGay Marriage Essay1744 Words   |  7 Pages 02/02/2012 Legalizing same-sex marriage has been a debate going on for quite some time. The recognition of such marriages is a civil rights, political, social, moral, and religious issue in many nations. Since 2001, ten countries have begun allowing same-sex couples to marry nationwide. In the United States the federal government does not recognize same-sex marriage, but such marriages are recognized by some individual states. Proposition 8 in November

Saturday, December 21, 2019

Europe and the Black Death Essay - 1541 Words

Chaos struck all-over Europe in the 14th century; no social class or individual was immune from this mysterious disaster. Historians estimated that this unidentifiable disease killed â€Å"more than 20 million people in Europe–almost one-third of the continent’s population,† by the 1350’s (Black Death). Now in today’s society scientists classify the unidentifiable disease as the bubonic plague, also referred to as the Black Death. During fourteenth century European-society, there was no logical medical knowledge; instead, people resorted to supplementary explanations, such as God punishing misbehaving religious groups and sinners (Black Death). In this time period, oral tradition was still common among the illiterate. Luckily, for the upper†¦show more content†¦Boccaccio’s resident resided in Florence Italy, where he wrote the Decameron from the years 1348-1353 A.D.. Uncoincidentally, the composure date overlaps with the prime infect ing period of the bubonic plague. Boccaccio was a wealthy merchant who produced other literature prior to the Decameron, reflecting moral attributes of Italian society (Encyclopedia Britannica). Also occurring in this time was the transition away from everyday use of the Catholic Church’s official language: Latin. The Decameron begins to follow the new trend from other renaissance writers by composing literature in vernacular form. By composing in colloquial literature, or the â€Å"everyday spoken language of the common people†, this reveals Boccaccio’s potential audience – the commoners, or the whole society, not the specified group of the clergy or Latin readers (Judge and Langdon 359-6). The language of the allegory’s composure and publication reveals more than just the intended audience; the Decameron also supports motivation behind Boccaccios production. If the Catholic Church prompted him to write the story, then the language would correspon d with language of the clergy, Latin. The content in the Decameron is not religious-based writing, nor propaganda, because this author reveals no signs of exterior influence to write this text. Specifically, quoted byShow MoreRelatedThe Black Death Of Europe1231 Words   |  5 Pagesfound regarding the history of the Black Death in Europe. It incorporates the beginning of the plague, the way that it spread, and the toll it took on Europe’s population. It answers questions concerning the context of my topic, the importance of subject at hand, as well as the affects it had on the society during and after this tragedy. Concluding this paper answers the final question of why people should know about this subject in the first place. The Black Death was single handedly one of the worstRead MoreThe Black Death Of Europe1265 Words   |  6 Pagesill and suffered from many symptoms such as fever, black swellings, and much more. It wasn’t long until others in the surrounding area started catching the same symptoms and began to fall sick as well. This point marked the arrival of the Black Death in Europe. The Black Death quickly and uncontrollably started to travel its way through Europe and had a great impact on Europe. It’s undeniable that the Black Death created many upheavals in Europe, but it also led to a few positive effects as wellRead MoreThe Black Death Of Europe2211 Words   |  9 Pages10. Black Death The black death arrived in Europe in October of 1347. It was brought by twelve Genoese trading ships that docked at the Sicilian port of Messina after a lengthy expedition through the Black Sea. The people that were gathered on the docks to meet the twelve ships were greeted with a terrifying surprise: the majority of the sailors that were on they ship were dead, and the ones that were still alive were somberly ill. They had fevers, were unable to hold down food, and were deliriousRead MoreThe Black Death Changed Europe1064 Words   |  5 PagesJalen Josey Mrs. Feagley Honors English 9 7 April 2015 The Black Death The Black Death changed Europe (and the entire world) in ways we can still observe today from a historical, societal, cultural, and medical standpoint. The Black Death was a very deadly outbreak of plague. Plague is a very deadly bacterial disease. It has been a recurring force that has wiped out much of the world’s population during it’s outbreaks. The bacteria that is responsible for one of history’s most deadly diseases isRead MoreThe Impact of the Black Death on Europe1526 Words   |  6 Pagesup the â€Å"ring† the center turns black and is surrounded by a red rash. The â€Å"Rosie† is the center of this reddish ring. The living began rotting before dying, healthy individuals used flowers to cover the odor. The poem shows attempts to get rid of the smell in the second verse, â€Å"a pocket full of posies† The posies represent fourteenth century air fresheners. â€Å"Ashes! Ashes!† Some may believe that the ashes represent cremation, the last line in the poem expresses death â€Å"we all fall down† no one survivesRead MoreThe Significance of the Black Death in Europe1916 Words   |  8 PagesThe Significance of The Black Dea th In Europe The Black Death, which swept across Europe between 1347 and 1351, had significance in all areas of life and culture: economic, social, psychological, and even religious. It ushered in a new age for all of Europe, in many ways speeding up the change from the medieval to modern era. In under a five year time span, one-third of Europe’s population died. There is some speculation that the toll was actually more than one-third, and could have reachedRead MoreThe Black Death And Its Effect On Medieval Europe1297 Words   |  6 Pages​The Black Death had profound effects on Medieval Europe. Although most people did not realize it at the time, the Black Death had not only marked the end of one age but it also denoted the beginning of a new one, namely the Renaissance. Between 1339 and 1351, a pandemic of plague called the Black Death, traveled from China to Europe affecting the importance of cities, creating economic and demographic crises as 2/3rd of the European popula tion was eradicated. ​ In the beginning, the ItalianRead MoreThe Deadly Black Death Plague Of Europe1054 Words   |  5 Pages Background Information The deadly Black Death plague of Europe arrived in 1346 A.D. , during the middle ages from the Middle East as commonly thought and was also known by other names such as â€Å"the pestilence .â€Å" The infectious deadly bacteria moved rapidly within Europe accounting for approximately 50% of mortality while disseminating northward along major trade routes of ships, lasting until the early 1350’s (Ross, 2015). The plague presented before traditional existenceRead MoreThe Black Death s Effects On Europe1470 Words   |  6 PagesThe Black Death’s Effects on Europe Cole Younger WH2 11-20-15 Rough Draft The disastrous plague called the Black Death had monumental, long lasting effects that would ultimately change the fate of the entire continent of Europe. The mid-1300s in Europe were part of the Dark Ages. Human populations were near over-crowding, and the land was stretched to produce food. Mother Nature created a drastic solution. The world lifted a bleak shadow of death and chaos over the people ofRead MoreThe Black Death Ravaged Europe And Its Inhabitants1588 Words   |  7 PagesFrom 1347 to about 1352, the Black Death ravaged Europe and its inhabitants. While this devastating plague caused an exorbitant loss of life and a great deal of emotional suffering, it did lead to some major social changes in Europe that changed the course of history. The Black Death transformed the consciousness of the surviving populous of medieval Europe in a way no other event that has occurred before or since could. This transformed psyche created the catalyst that expedited the transformation

Friday, December 13, 2019

Succubus on Top CHAPTER 1 Free Essays

Demons are scary. No matter what religion or walk of life you come from, this remains pretty constant. Oh sure, they have their absurd moments – especially in the circles I run with – but all in all, people have good reason to fear and avoid hell’s diabolical servants. We will write a custom essay sample on Succubus on Top CHAPTER 1 or any similar topic only for you Order Now They’re cruel and merciless, delight in pain and suffering, and torture souls in their free time. They lie. They steal. They cheat on their taxes. Yet, in spite of all that, I couldn’t help but think I was about to witness the most terrifying demonic act yet. An awards ceremony. For me. Horatio, vice demon of such-and-such division of Infernal Affairs, stood before me, trying to impart an air of solemnity to the moment and failing miserably. I suspected his sky blue polyester suit and matching paisley bow tie were largely to blame. The sideburns didn’t help either. He probably hadn’t left the inner circles of hell in about six centuries, back around the last time sky blue polyester was in style. With a too-long clearing of his throat, he glanced back and forth between those gathered, verifying we were all paying attention. My supervisor Jerome stood nearby, looking utterly bored, occasionally glancing at his watch. Beside him, Horatio’s impish assistant Kasper grinned from ear to ear. A briefcase sat on the floor near him, and he clutched an assortment of papers. The eager, suck-up, lapdog look on his face indicated a burning desire for promotion. As for me†¦well, I was fighting a hard battle to look excited too – and failing. Which was unacceptable, of course. I’m a succubus. My entire existence relies on making people – men in particular – believe and see what they want to in me. I can switch from simpering virgin to sultry dominatrix in a heartbeat. All it takes is a bit of shape-shifting and a dash of playacting. I’d picked up the former ability when I traded away my human soul; I’d acquired the latter over time. After all, you can’t spend centuries telling every guy, â€Å"Yeah baby, you were the best I’ve ever had† and not learn a little something about schmoozing. Myths may paint us as ethereal, demonic creatures of pleasure, but honestly, being a succubus just comes down to a convincing poker face and a good sales pitch. So, really, this awards thing shouldn’t have been a problem for me. But Horatio wasn’t making it easy to keep a straight face. â€Å"Verily, it gives me great honor to be here today,† he intoned in a nasal, baritone voice. Verily? â€Å"Hard work is what makes us great, and we gather here now to recognize one who has. shown dedication and given her all to the Greater Evil. Such individuals are what make us strong, what will allow us to win in this immense battle when all tallies are counted at the end of time. Such individuals are worthy of our esteem, and we strive to reward their commitment, letting all know just how important it is to push hard against the odds and fight for our objectives in these difficult times. â€Å" He then added: â€Å"Whereas those who do not work hard are cast into the fiery pits of despair, to burn for all eternity and be ripped asunder by the hounds of hell.† I opened my mouth, on the verge of noting how that would be more cost effective than severance pay, but Jerome caught my eye and shook his head. Meanwhile, Horatio had nudged Kasper, and the imp hastily handed over a gold embossed certificate. â€Å"It is therefore with great pleasure that I present unto you this Award of Achievement for Excellently Exceeding and Surpassing Requisite Succubus Quotas in this Most Recent Quarter. Congratulations.† Horatio shook my hand and handed me the certificate, which had been signed by about fifty different people. This Certifies that: LETHA (alias Georgina Kincaid), Succubus in the Archdiocese of Seattle, Washington, United States of America, North America, Earth, has hereby Excellently Exceeded and Surpassed Requisite Succubus Quotas in this Most Recent Quarter, demonstrating outstanding performance in seduction, damnation, and corruption of human souls. Everyone looked at me when I finished reading, so I supposed they expected some kind of speech or something. Mostly I was wondering if I’d get in trouble for trimming this down to fit an eight-by-ten frame. â€Å"Urn, thanks. This is†¦cool.† That seemed to satisfy Horatio. He nodded smartly, then shot a glance to Jerome. â€Å"You must be so proud.† â€Å"Exceptionally,† murmured the archdemon, stifling a yawn. Horatio turned back to me. â€Å"Keep up the good work. You might find yourself in line for promotion to the corporate level.† As if giving my soul away wasn’t already bad enough. I forced a smile. â€Å"Well. There’s still so much to do here.† â€Å"Excellent attitude. Most excellent. You’ve done well with her.† He gave Jerome a chummy pat on the back, something my boss did not look happy about at all. He didn’t really like friendly pats. Or being touched, period. â€Å"Well, if there’s nothing more, I should probably – oh, I nearly forgot.† Horatio turned to Kasper. The imp handed over something else to his master. â€Å"These are for you. As a token of our appreciation.† He gave me a gift card for Applebee’s, as well as some Blockbuster free-rental coupons. Jerome and I both stared for a moment, dumbstruck. â€Å"Wow,† I finally said. The runner-up for this award probably got a gift card for Sizzler. Never doubt that second place really is the first loser. Horatio and Kasper vanished. Jerome and I stood in silence for a few moments. â€Å"You like riblets, Jerome?† â€Å"Droll, very droll,Georgie.† He strolled around my living room, pretending to study my books and artwork. â€Å"Nice job with the quota thing. Of course, it’s easy to excel when you’re starting at zero, huh?† I shrugged and tossed the certificate on my kitchen counter. â€Å"Does it really matter? Still gets you the laurels. I figured you’d like that.† â€Å"Of course I do. In fact, I’ve been rather pleasantly surprised at just how well you’ve kept your promise.† â€Å"I always keep my promises.† â€Å"Not all of your promises.† My silence made him smile. â€Å"So what now? Going out to celebrate?† â€Å"You know where I’m going. I’m going to Peter’s. Aren’t you?† He avoided the question; demons excelled at that. â€Å"I thought perhaps other plans had arisen. Plans with a certain mortal. You do seem to be doing that an awful lot lately. â€Å" â€Å"It’s none of your business what I do.† â€Å"All of your business is my business.† Again, I didn’t answer. The demon stepped closer, dark eyes boring into me. For inexplicable reasons, he chose to look like John Cusack while walking the human world. That might seem like it would reduce his power to intimidate, but I swear, it only made things worse. â€Å"How long are you going to keep up this farce, Georgie?† His words were a challenge, trying to draw me out. â€Å"You can’t honestly think you have a future with him. Or that you two can stay chaste forever. For Christ’s sake, even if you can keep your hands off him, no human male’s going to stay celibate for long. Especially one with a large fan base.† â€Å"Did you miss the part where I said it’s my business?† Heat rose to my cheeks. Despite knowing better, I’d recently gotten myself involved with a human. I wasn’t even entirely sure how it had happened since I’ve always gone out of my way to avoid that kind of thing. I guess you could say he sort of snuck up on me. One moment he was simply a warm and comforting presence at my side; the next I realized how intensely he loved me. That love had blindsided me. I hadn’t been able to resist it and had decided to see where it might take me. As a result, Jerome never failed to remind me of the potential disaster I courted daily in this romance. His opinion wasn’t entirely unfounded. A small part of this was because I didn’t have a good track record with serious relationships. The larger part was that doing much more than hand-holding with a human would inevitably lead to me sucking away some of his life. But hey, all couples have their stumbling blocks, right? The demon smoothed down the jacket of his perfectly tailored black suit. â€Å"Just friendly advice. It makes no difference. I don’t mind if you keep playing house with him – denying him a future, a family, a healthy sex life. Whatever. So long as you keep up the good work, it’s all the same to me.† â€Å"Are you done with the pep talk? I’m late.† â€Å"One more thing. I thought you might like to know I just made some arrangements for a pleasant surprise. One you’ll like.† â€Å"What kind of surprise?† Jerome didn’t really do surprises. Not good ones, at least. â€Å"Wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you, now would it?† Typical. I scoffed and turned away. â€Å"I don’t have time for your games. Either tell me what’s going on or leave.† â€Å"I think I’ll leave. But, before I do, just remember something. † He put his hand on my shoulder and turned me around to face him again. I flinched at his touch and his proximity. The demon and I were not as buddy-buddy as we had once been. â€Å"You only have one man who’s a constant in your life, only one man you will always answer to. A hundred years from now, he will be dust in the earth, and I will be the one you keep coming back to.† It sounded romantic or sexual, but it wasn’t. Not in the least. My tie to Jerome ran deeper than that. A binding and loyalty that literally went straight to my soul. A connection I was bound to for all eternity, at least until the powers of hell decided to assign me to a different archdemon. â€Å"Your pimp routine is getting old.† He stepped back, undisturbed by my rancor. His eyes danced. â€Å"If I’m a pimp, Georgina, what’s that make you?† There was an ostentatious poof of smoke, and Jerome disappeared before I could reply. Fucking demons. I stood alone in my apartment, turning over his words in my mind. Finally, remembering the time, I headed for the bedroom to change clothes. As I did, I passed Horatio’s certificate. Its gold seal winked up at me. I flipped it over, face down, suddenly feeling queasy. I might be good at what I did, but that didn’t mean I was proud of it. I ended up only being about fifteen minutes late for my friend Peter’s shindig. He answered his door before I could even knock. Taking in his billowing white hat and KISS THE COOK apron, I said, â€Å"I’m sorry. No one told me Iron Chef was being filmed here tonight.† â€Å"You’re late,† he chided, waving a wooden spoon in the air. â€Å"So what, you win an award and think you can forget all about propriety now?† I ignored his disapproval and swept inside. It was the only thing you could do with an obsessive-compulsive vampire. In the living room, I found our other friends Cody and Hugh sorting large piles of cash. â€Å"Did you guys rob a bank?† â€Å"Nope,† said Hugh. â€Å"Since Peter’s trying to provide us with a civilized meal tonight, we decided a civilized pastime was required.† â€Å"Money laundering?† â€Å"Poker.† From the kitchen, I could hear Peter muttering to himself about a souffle. It sort of diminished my image of a bunch of shady characters huddled around a backroom card table. â€Å"I think bridge would be more appropriate.† Hugh looked doubtful. â€Å"That’s an old-person’s game, sweetie.† I had to smile at that. â€Å"Old† was kind of a relative term when most of us could boast centuries. I had long suspected that among my circle of lesser immortals – those who were not true angels or demons – I had more years than any of them, never mind the optimistic claim of being twenty-eight on my driver’s license. â€Å"Since when do we even play games?† I wondered aloud. Our last attempt had involved a game of Monopoly with Jerome. Competing with a demon in a struggle for property and ultimate control is kind of futile. â€Å"Since when don’t we play games? Games of life, games of death. Games of love, of hope, of chance, of despair, and of all the myriad wonders in between.† I rolled my eyes at the newcomer. â€Å"Hello, Carter.† I’d known the angel was lurking in the kitchen, just as Peter had felt me coming down the hall. â€Å"Where’s your better half tonight? I just saw him. I thought he was coming too.† Carter strolled in and gave me one of his mocking smiles, gray eyes alight with secrets and mirth. He wore his usual transient ware, ripped jeans and a faded T-shirt. When it came to age, the rest of us couldn’t even compare to him. We had all once been mortal; we measured our lives in centuries or millennia. Angels and demons†¦well, they measured their lives in eternity. â€Å"‘Am I my brother’s keeper?'† Classic Carter answer. I looked to Hugh, who was, in a manner of speaking, our boss’s keeper. Or at least a sort of administrative assistant. â€Å"He had to take off for a meeting,† said the imp, stacking twenties. â€Å"Some kind of team-building thing in L.A.† I tried to imagine Jerome participating in a ropes course. â€Å"What kind of team building do demons do exactly?† No one had an answer for that. Which was probably just as well. While the money sorting continued, Peter made me a vodka gimlet. I eyed the bottle of Absolut on his counter. â€Å"What the hell is that?† â€Å"I ran out of Grey Goose. They’re practically the same anyway.† â€Å"I swear, if you weren’t already an abomination before the Lord, I’d accuse you of heresy. â€Å" When all the money was sorted, including my contribution, we sat around the vampires’ kitchen table. Like everyone else in the known world right now, we started playing Texas Hold,em. I could play okay but fared far better with mortals than immortals. My charisma and glamour had less effect on this group, which meant I had to think harder about odds and strategy. Peter scurried around during the game, attempting to play and watch his meal at the same time. It wasn’t easy, since he insisted on wearing sunglasses while playing, which then had to be removed while he checked the food. When I commented on how this would be my second fancy dinner in two nights, he nearly had a fit. â€Å"Whatever. Nothing you had last night will even compare to this duck I’ve made. Nothing.† â€Å"I don’t know about that. I went to the Metropolitan Grill.† Hugh whistled. â€Å"Whoa. I wondered where you got the glow from. When a guy takes you to the Met, you can’t really help but put out, huh?† â€Å"The glow’s from a different guy,† I said uncomfortably, not really wanting to be reminded of a tryst I’d had this morning, even if it had been pretty hot. â€Å"I went to the Met with Seth.† The memory of last night’s dinner brought a smile to my face, and I suddenly found myself rambling. â€Å"You should have seen him. He actually didn’t wear a T-shirt for once, though I’m not sure it made a difference. The shirt he did have on was all wrinkled, and he couldn’t really tie the tie. Plus, when I first got there, he had his laptop out on the table. He’d shoved everything else aside – napkins, wineglasses. It was a mess. The waiters were horrified.† Four sets of eyes stared at me. â€Å"What?† I demanded. â€Å"What’s wrong?† â€Å"You are,† said Hugh. â€Å"You’re a glutton for punishment.† Cody smiled. â€Å"Not to mention totally love struck. Listen to yourself.† â€Å"She’s not in love with him,† said Peter. â€Å"She’s in love with his books.† â€Å"No I’m – † The words died on my lips, mainly because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to argue. I didn’t want them to think I only loved the books, but I wasn’t entirely sure I loved Seth yet either. Our relationship had blossomed with remarkable speed, but sometimes, I worried what I actually loved was the idea of him loving me. â€Å"I can’t believe you guys are still doing the sexless-dating thing,† continued Hugh. My temper flared. I’d already taken this from Jerome; I didn’t need to hear it here too. â€Å"Look, I don’t want to talk about this if you guys are just going to nag me, okay? I’m tired of everyone telling me how crazy it is.† Peter shrugged. â€Å"I don’t know. It’s not that crazy. You always hear about these married couples who never have sex anymore. They survive. This would be almost the same thing.† â€Å"Not with our girl.† Hugh shook his head. â€Å"Look at her. Who wouldn’t want to have sex with her?† They all looked again, making me squirm. â€Å"Hey,† I protested, feeling the need to clear up a point. â€Å"That’s not the problem. He wants to, okay? He’s just not going to. There’s a difference.† â€Å"Sorry,† said Hugh. â€Å"I’m just not buying it. He can’t be with you in the clothes you wear and not crack. Even if he could, no guy could handle his woman seeing as much action as you do.† It was a well-worn point in my mind, the same Jerome had made, the one that worried me more than our ability to keep our hands off each other. One of my greatest nightmares involved having a conversation akin to: Sorry, Seth. I can’t go out tonight. I have to go work this married guy I met, so I can get him to sleep with me, thus leading him further and further down the road to damnation while I suck away part of his life. Maybe when I’m done, you and I can catch a late movie. â€Å"I don’t want to talk about this,† I repeated. â€Å"We’re doing just fine. End of story.† Silence fell, save for the sound of cards and money hitting the table. Glancing around, I saw Carter watching me levelly. Only he had stayed out of the Seth bashing. This didn’t surprise me. The angel usually just listened until he could interject some sarcastic or esoteric quip. This used to infuriate me, but recent events had changed my attitude toward him. I still didn’t fully understand him or know if I could trust him, but I had come to respect him. Troubled by the scrutiny, I glanced back down and discovered I finally had a respectable hand after several rounds of shit. Three of a kind. Not the greatest but passable. I raised high, wanting to get the others out before more cards came into play and made my hand less passable. My strategy worked on the vampires. The next card fell. Seven of spades. Hugh scowled and folded when I raised again. I waited for Carter to drop out as well, but instead, he reraised further. I hesitated only a moment before calling. As the last card was about to play, I puzzled over what the angel might have and whether I could beat it. A pair? Two pair? Ah. The last card came out. Another spade. There was now a strong possibility he had a flush. That would beat me. Still hoping I could bluff him out, I raised even more. He reraised me again, more than doubling my initial bet. That was a lot of money to add, especially considering what I’d already put in. Centuries of investments kept me pretty comfortable, but that didn’t mean I had to be stupid. What did he have? It had to be the flush. Balking, I folded. With a pleased grin, he swept in the massive pot. When he tossed his hand over to the discard pile, the cards’ edges caught, making them flip over. Two of diamonds. Eight of clubs. â€Å"You†¦you bluffed!† I cried. â€Å"You had nothing!† Carter wordlessly lit a cigarette. I looked to the others for confirmation. â€Å"He can’t do that.† â€Å"Hell, I’ve been doing it for half this game,† said Hugh, borrowing Carter’s lighter. â€Å"Not that it’s done me any good.† â€Å"Yeah†¦but†¦he’s, you know. An angel. They can’t lie.† â€Å"He didn’t lie. He bluffed.† Cody considered, twisting a piece of his blond hair around one finger. â€Å"Yeah, but bluffing is still dishonest.† â€Å"It’s implied lying,† said Peter. Hugh stared at him. â€Å"‘Implied lying?’ What the fuck does that mean?† I watched Carter stack his money and made a face at him. You’d think an angel who hung around with employees of evil would be a good influence, but at times, he seemed worse than we were. â€Å"Enjoy your thirty pieces of silver, Judas.† He gave me a mock hat tip while the others argued on. Suddenly, like a row of dominoes, conversation steadily dropped. Carter felt it first, of course, but he merely arched an eyebrow, as indifferent as ever. Then came the vampires with their heightened reflexes and sensitivity. They exchanged glances and looked toward the door. Finally, seconds later, Hugh and I sensed it as well. â€Å"What is that?† Cody frowned, staring across the room. â€Å"It’s sort of like Georgina but not.† Hugh followed the young vampire’s gaze, face mildly speculative. â€Å"Incubus.† I had already known that, of course. The signatures we all carried differed by creature. Vampires felt different from imps, just as imps felt different from succubi. If one knew an immortal well enough, one could also pick up on an individual’s unique attributes. I was the only succubus who inspired sensations of silk and tuberose perfume. In a room full of vampires, I would have been able to quickly determine if Cody or Peter were present. Likewise, I immediately knew there was an incubus approaching Peter’s door, and I knew exactly which incubus it was. I would have known his signature anywhere, even after all this time. The fleeting feel of velvet on the skin. A whispered scent of rum, almond, and cinnamon. Not even realizing I’d gotten up, I flung the door open, staring with delight at the same fox-faced features and mischievous eyes I’d last seen over a century ago. â€Å"Hello, ma Fleur ,† he said. How to cite Succubus on Top CHAPTER 1, Essay examples

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Working in Human Service Organization

Question: Discuss about the Working in Human Service Organization. Answer: Introduction The current essay revolves around the organizational practice in human service organizations. It has been identified that the workers who are employed in human service organizations have to follow a set of rules and work ethics. These rules and ethics could sometimes be vulnerable for the employees themselves. The workers in human service organization generally should adhere to the commitment to employers as well as employing organizations. The workers are supposed to enhance the employing agencys policies and procedures the efficiency and effectiveness of their services. In addition, social workers should take reasonable steps to ensure that employers are aware of the social workers ethical obligation. The people who work in human service organization tend to act to prevent as well as omit discriminations in organizations work assignment and tits employment. Therefore, it can be mentioned that employees in human service organizations have to deal with the certain pressure that arise due to the strict rules and policies. Furthermore, it has also been identified that multiple section of the code helps to identify that human service organizational work practice could produce the conflicts between the workers and the agency. These issues or the points of conflicts have long been recognized based on the profession as well as it continues to pose the challenge to the conditions and the nature of the practice. The current essay provides an essay regarding the type of duties and responsibilities, the workers tend to carry out being employed in the organizations. Likewise, the essay extends to the discussion of the major contradictory pressures that employee need to balance. The work practices are discussed with strategies related to the topic. The essay also provides an intensive discussion on the theories such as supervisions, counseling and self-care. In addition to all these, the essay incorporated a brief on psychological factors that could influence the performance in human service organizations. Background of workers in human service organizations It has been identified that human service organizations tend to employ a large number of workers kin range of capabilities job role. As put forward by Beresford (2010) four main players in complex organizations including the professional, the manger and the support workers and the leaders. This specialization is based on the understanding of thee power and this could only occur in those organizations that hire the highly skilled people. Such organization could depend on the transformation of knowledge and information. It generally classifies each of the employers in respect to the professional as well as organization competencies. The specialization could produce archetypical roles and these are present within the social work organization. While recognizing the area of the community competence, two additional players such as the volunteer and the client can be incorporated into the schema. These players may not always be the employees of the organizations, though they could receive s ome benefits for being involved in the organizational activities. Hence, the benefits come in the form services that they receive and the opportunity to gain skills. On the contrary, Corcoran and Roberts (2015) mentioned that front line workers are usually considered as being at the Coal Face of human service activities. It is observed that these are the people that have the most contact with the service users as well as who consequently have the considerable community competence. Conversely, Gabler and Hill (2015) mentioned that social as well as human service organizations tend to work with some of the most fragile as well as at risk population that could include the elderly, the homeless as well as low income families. In addition to these, the human service organization also provides the services to people with disabilities, and the people who are suffering from domestic violence. Therefore, if an organization is providing the services this type of population in need or work with or as the part, a government agency aimed at helping the less fortunate, the organization is not supposed to risk exposing the workers (Gallina, 2010). The organization is not supposed to recruit people who are with questionable character while serving these populations of people. Moreover, any such incident not only put the people in danger but also could dramatically tarnish the image of the organization. Therefore, it is necessary for the human service organization to check or identify the background of the workers who wish to work in human service organizations. The workers with many people and non-profit organizations with social as well as human service goals turn to verified volunteers for background screening. This could minimize the chances of risk and increase the quality of human services. Every organization in this particular category or the industry should think of hiring people who are characteristically clean without any criminal record. As put forward by Guerci et al., (2015), the social work and the human service workforce organization, especially in the community service industry has employed a lower percentage of the workers with post-school qualification in comparison with other workforce sector. For example, the education is aligned with health professional. Key contradictory pressures workers need to balance Human service workers need to provide a range of services aiming at enhancing victims life. Hence, the type of services they provide could vary by client group, the type of organization that hires the workers as well as their role in the agency. However, the human service workers tend to perform many of the same categories of the tasks, where they evaluate persons needs as well as create a treatment plan. However, it is observed that workers who work in human service organizations have to implement or follow certain rules and procedures that sometimes put pressure on the workers. Consequently, the employees may lose confidence and their quality of performance may decrease. Personal problem- The workers often suffer from different personal issues such as sickness, pressure of running a join family, linguistic problem, culture issues and others that could hamper the performance of the employees. As mentioned by Jeane (2013), as the organizations often maintain a diverse workforce and build a positive culture, the employees could feel sense of negativity. For example, some people may think as they belong to a different culture, they are given more priorities than others are. In addition, the some people face the difficulties of language. When the other employees in the workplace are good at communicating with people and receiving appraisal words from others, the people who lag behind in this context may keep themselves away from others. This could increase their insecurity and disaffection. While providing the human services to others, they might lack confidence. Moreover, the language barrier could be a major issue for the workers in social service organization (Ozanne Rose, 2013). For example, if the workers are supposed to deal with the people who speak a different language, they might not be able to understand the issues and find solutions. Thus, the clients may be disheartened, which could be an external burden for the employees in service organization. In addition to this, the people who find it difficult to mix with people who belong to the different culture may find their job difficult, as in social service sector, the workers are supposed to meet people who may not be from the same culture. Work life balance- People often talk about the significance of accomplishing the elusive work life balance. However, Ramos et al., (2015) commented that people are in the rush of finding the perfect balance pipe dream a wasted effort. In the era, the fast-paced workplace, most of the people are asked to do faster with limited resources. Consequently, there could be more pressure to be effective and successful. Hence, the work seems to be exemplary and life is expected to perfect with children and fulfilling personal hobbies as well as take a good care of physics. However, it is difficult for the employees to maintain this balance due to some organizational practice. Especially, when the organizations build multiple categories of rules and procedures, the employees find it difficult to cope up. In addition, in some organizations work shift are not flexible and changeable; consequently, the workers find it difficult to take care of their personal life. They eventually suffer from increased pressure and burden. In addition to this, when it come to offer the human services, the work practice could be little rigid and not changeable. In this particular sector, the employees often have to deal with the urgency or emergency situations. As the result, the issue of their personal life remains unresolved (Tablan, 2014). Organizational plan- It is observed that due to the absence of open management style in human service organization, the employees have to go through a harsh schedule of work. When the organization set some particular objective or the goals, the employees are asked to perform aligning with the goals. This could be an internal burden for the workers. Due to the autocratic leadership style in the service organization, the employees do not find comfort in sharing their personal issues with the leaders (Haynes, 2015). The workers go on performing their duties, which eventually make them stressful. As discussed earlier, in many section of the codes of work practices developed by the organization, could produce conflicts between the professional as well as the agency. As the employees are tied with the ethics, sometimes making an ethical decision may not be as simple as it is. The code of ethics provide certain guidelines and ethical behavior, which could not be simple as following the ethic x and the ethic y. this happens as the ethics are contextual. Furthermore, it is also observed that in spite of the innovations in how the service organizations are managed, the factor remains that professional practice within an organizational context may contain some irregularities, which could produce strain. As argued by Lusch and Nambisan (2015), the employee should have an unconditional loyalty to the organization and they should demonstrate a greater level of acceptance of the objective set by the organization. Notwithstanding, the employees by virtue of training as well as their ability to conduct the particular tasks, could have different priorities and style of work. Industrial relation: theory and practice- Due to the pressure from the workforce and the labor union, the government of different nations have attempted to balance flexibility with fairness as well as preserve hi-tech regulations along with the introduction of the right to the minimum wages. On the contrary, while focusing on the industrial relation, the origination could go beyond the mere descriptions to build the connection between the workplace enhancement and the change in the agency (Hasenfeld Garrow, 2012). This means the organizations would follow and implement the corporations rules and procedures but considering the workers demand and principle of faire work commission. However, in return, the organization also expects something more from the workers. Notwithstanding this could sometimes be a burden to the workers when they are not able to meet the requirement. The dialect of autonomy and the control in creative labor- It has been identified that creative labor could occupy a greater contradictory position in todays global and knowledge-based economy. Conversely, the organizations might have to keep the balance their instable need for the stream of advanced ideas with the strong imperative to control the intellectual property. Hence, the creative labors find it difficult to find the balance between the urge for self-expression and the need to earn for living. Role of conflicts- It is evident that no organization is free from the conflicts as it is unavoidable. However, the impact of organizational conflicts could depend on the ways in which it is dealt with. In human service organization, due to the array of codes and ethics, the individual may find it difficult to implement. The organizational conflicts could occur by several reasons such as communication gap among the workers, poor wage structure, unfavorable leadership style and other internal issues. As put forward by Dhar (2015), organizational conflicts sometimes could educate people by helping workers learn a lot regarding themselves and others. Thus, it can be mentioned that organizational conflicts the ability to the organization to reshape its internal culture and solve the conflicts. Differences in moral and values- As opined by Denhardt, Denhardt and Aristigueta (2015), the values are the rules based on which the people make decisions regarding the right and wrong, good and bad. Thus, what is good for the organization may not always be good for the workers as well. For example, due to the increasing competition in the industry or the growing demands of clients, the organization increases the work hours. Hence, the workers in non-profit organization may be dealing with the problems like time schedule, over burden of work, inflexibility and others. On the contrary, the morals are formed based on the inborn values but they are correlated to each other. Hence, it is advisable to talk about the business morals that may include prompt service, excellence, safety and quality. When employee expectations are not fulfilled they lag behind these morals. Strategies available Supervision-It is observed that human service agencies assist in the movement of the organization towards the goals and objectives. Hence, supervision is the technique of overseeing the operation or performance of an individual or groups. Barrett et al., (2015) opined that three different elements such as administrative, education as well as the support. It is observed administrative supervisions in human service organization are generally concerned with the effective implementation of organizational procedures as well as procedures. As human service organizations have to deal with wide range of services and activities, the supervisor of the agency needs to assist the employees to work to their abilities. The supervisor needs to ensure that organizational requirement is implemented. Counseling- It is evident that services provided by the non-profit organization incorporate the values and ethics and the agencies maintain certain standards. Therefore, the it is necessary for the agency to provide counseling to care givers as they have to take broad range of responsibilities. In addition, the workers need to be competent in providing the services. Here, the special emphasis should be given on the achievement of excellence in academic as well as professional competencies. As the responsibility, the care providers hire the people who have excellent academic records and have skills of dealing with stressful situation (Scott Davis, 2015). The workers in human service organization should have the ability to provide and maintain the quality of services in accordance with the requirement. However, while conducting such broad range of abilities, the workers may have to deal with the certain anxiety. Hence, counseling could be an effective to motivate the workers. Figure: 1 A metaphoric image of stress aced by people (Source: Scott Davis, 2015) Self-Care- it has been identified that people who work in human service agency are keen to provide the best quality of services to the clients. However, the care providers treat thee clients following a traditional way of approach such as focusing on the needs and provide remedy but today, the approach of treating the clients have been changed as people expect more. Apart from the providing clinical treatment to the clients, the employees of human service organizations provide self-care such as treating the person nicely forming a personal relationship such as friendship. Conclusion The broad discussion mentioned above helps to learn that workers in human service organizations have been improving the ways or approach of providing the services to people who are badly in need. Gone are the days, when the care providers tend to provide the treatments following the ethics and procedures; now people expect more from the person they rely on. Figure 2: An image of treating the patient (Source: Dhar, 2015) Thereby, the workers in service agency provide emotional support and treat the patients sharing the events of their life, which helps the clients to gain support. The clients may suffer from many difficulties or problems; thereby, the human service workers should routinely provide emotional support along with other forms of assistance. Hence, this care provides should form an effective working relationship to make the clients feel comfortable sharing the issues honestly and seeking for help. Reference list: Barrett, M., Davidson, E., Prabhu, J., Vargo, S. L. (2015). Service innovation in the digital age: key contributions and future directions.MIS quarterly,39(1), 135-154. Beresford, P. (2010). Hong Kong Agenda Consultation Paper: Service User/Consumer Involvement and Social Work. Bern: IFSW. Corcoran, K., Roberts, A. R. (2015). Social Workers' Desk Reference. New York: Oxford University Press. Denhardt, R. B., Denhardt, J. V., Aristigueta, M. P. (2015).Managing human behavior in public and nonprofit organizations. Sage Publications. Dhar, R. L. (2015). Service quality and the training of employees: The mediating role of organizational commitment.Tourism Management,46, 419-430. Gabler, C. B., Hill, R. P. (2015). Abusive supervision, distributive justice, and work-life balance: perspectives from salespeople and managers. Journal of Personal Selling Sales Management, 247-261. Gallina, N. (2010). Conflict Between Professional Ethics and Practice Demands: Social Workers Perceptions. Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics, 21-25. Guerci, M., Radaelli, G., Siletti, E., Cirella, S., Rami, S. A. (2015). The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices and Corporate Sustainability on Organizational Ethical Climates: An Employee Perspective. Journal of Business Ethics, 325-342. Hasenfeld, Y., Garrow, E. E. (2012). Nonprofit human-service organizations, social rights, and advocacy in a neoliberal welfare state.Social Service Review,86(2), 295-322. Haynes, P. (2015).Managing complexity in the public services. Routledge. Jeane, W. A. (2013). NASW Standards for Social Work Case Management. New York: National Association of Social Workers. Lusch, R. F., Nambisan, S. (2015). Service Innovation: A Service-Dominant Logic Perspective.Mis Quarterly,39(1), 155-175. Ozanne, E., Rose, D. (2013). The Organizational Context of human service practice. South Yara: Palgrave. Ramos, F. R., Brehmer, F. L., Trombetta, A. P., Silveira, L. R., Drago, L. (2015). Ethical conflicts and the process of reflection in undergraduate nursing students in Brazil. Nursing Ethics, 428-439. Scott, W. R., Davis, G. F. (2015).Organizations and organizing: Rational, natural and open systems perspectives. Routledge. Suhonen, R., Stolt, M., Katajisto, J., Charalambous, A., Olson, L. (2015). Validation of the Hospital Ethical Climate Survey for older people care. Nursing Ethics, 517-532. Tablan, F. (2014). Ethical Implications of Catholic Social Teachings on Human Work for the Service Industry. Journal of Religion Business Ethics, 1-23.